SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER

We have made it through the start of the school year! Today is day 10 already! Other than a few minor bumps, we have had a GREAT start to the school year! Our counselors have worked hard to make schedule changes and our teachers have been great at adapting as students have been dropped and added to classes. It has been time consuming as our enrollment is approximately 2,260 students! We ended last school year at 2188 so for the 4th year in a row, our enrollment is up! Thankfully, we are almost finished with schedule changes!

At Canyon High School, we pride ourselves on being great at the four A's: Academics, Activities, Arts and Athletics. On the 1st of each month, I send out a Monthly Newsletter that highlights our achievements from the previous month as well as upcoming events in these four areas. These newsletter is a great way to keep up with everything that is happening at Canyon High School as we celebrate the success of our students. Hopefully, you will take time to read through them each month.

This one will be shorter than most as we are only 2 weeks into the school year but there are some important events highlighted.

Sincerely,

Brent McKee
Principal

The first day of school is always full or energy and excitement. Our ASB helped create a welcoming environment for all of our students by coming to school early that day and placing posters all over campus. They were also at the main entrance before zero period to greet students and parents as they arrived for the first day of school.

We will be holding our annual Back To School Night on Wednesday, September 16th at 6:00 PM. This is a great opportunity for parents to meet their student's teachers. Parents will follow their student's bell starting with zero period at 6:00 PM. Each class will last 10 minutes with a 5 minute passing period in between. There will be a message with more information coming out next week. Until then, please save the date as we would love to welcome all of you onto our campus on the 16th.

One of the things that helps make Canyon a Great School is its culture! What makes our culture great is that we have amazing students who are involved in many activities. These include clubs, rallies, dances, performing arts and athletic events. One of the best ways to see our culture on display is at our Home Varsity Football Games. I would strongly encourage your student (and parent) to attend our next home game on September 4th. Our Football Games are much more than just a game. It is a coming together of our community. Besides the game, our Cheerleaders, Song Team, Marching Band and Color Guard are there to perform and entertain. Our ASB also finds ways to involve students with dress up themes and activities during the game. Tickets are free to students with an ASB card so hopefully we will see them and you at the next home game on September 4th!

Canyon High School has a group of juniors and seniors called the Ambassadors. They help us out with events, provide guidance to students on the first days of school and will serve as mentors to our incoming 9th graders. On September 4th, we will be having our annual 9th grade orientation during 1st and 3rd periods. This is a program we started almost 20 years ago. To help prepare for the 9th grade orientation, these students gave up their last vacation day before school started to go through training provided by motivational speaker Keith Hawkins and his son Jaylen. Thank you to all these students for helping make Canyon a Great School!

On Saturday, September 12th, Canyon will be holding its annual Welcome Back Dance (a.k.a. WARP) in the Quad from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM. If your student would like to attend and hasn't purchased a ticket, please have them go to the student center. Tickets are $25. We do cap ticket sales so they shouldn't wait to purchase.

Join us for the first PTSA meeting of the school year this Thursday, September 3 at 9:00am in the Canyon Library. Come hear first-hand all that is happening at Canyon! We look forward to seeing you there!

The Canyon High School PTSA is excited for another great school year and looks forward to supporting our students, teachers, staff, and families. We're kicking off the year with our membership drive and we invite every Canyon family, student, teacher and staff member to join! Your membership helps fund programs like curriculum grants, senior scholarships, Red Ribbon Week, teacher and staff appreciation events, Reflections Arts Program, family workshops, and campus clean-up. Every membership strengthens our school community. You can join by visiting our website on Totem linked below.

PTSA is proud to support Reflections. The Reflections program provides opportunities for recognition and access to the arts which boosts student confidence and success in the arts and in life. Categories include: Dance Choreography, Literature, Photography, Music Composition, Film Production, Visual Arts, and Accessible Art (student abilities program). This year's theme is "What My Culture Means to Me." Entry forms and instructions will be available soon and due mid-October. Please be on the lookout for more information.

Even though school just started, AP Test Sales are happening now! Please click on the link below for information on how to purchase the test which you will want to do before October 30th to avoid a late fee. If you have any questions, please reach out to Mr. Hammond at ahammond2@orangeusd.org.

Canyon High School will be offering the SAT to 12th graders only on Thursday October 15th. There is no fee to take the test. For more information as well as to sign your student up, click on the link below. Deadline to sign up is September 11th.

Canyon High School will be offering the PSAT to 11th graders only on Friday, October 16th. There is no fee to take the test. For more information as well as to sign your student up, click on the link below. Deadline to sign up is September 11th.

Our outstanding IB program has a lot going on. More than I can cover in my newsletter so they have produced their own newsletter. Please click on the following link to view it.

We have a great group of students on our campus but unfortunately, we aren't perfect. Every year we have students who have items stolen out of their car or PE locker. Because there are no cameras in locker rooms as well as areas of the parking lot, it is difficult to find out who took the items and thus be able to get them back. We encourage our students not to bring valuable items or large amounts of money to school. We would also appreciate it if you would remind them to lock their cars and PE lockers.

The Canyon High School Dance Company will be presenting its Halloween Spooktacular on October 4th from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. There will be crafts, food, dancing and fun activities for all ages. Cost is $30.

Our Fall Sports season is underway as most teams have played at least 2-3 games and are off to a great start. The October Newsletter will have more detailed updates of our success but in the meantime, please visit the Canyon Athletics Website to see the schedules of all our teams.

Does your student need some extra help with their classes? Below are three great free options for tutoring.

Does your student need extra help in Math? Then they should go to room 139 between 7:30 AM and 8:15 AM to get extra help. One of our great Math Teachers, Mr. Svoboda is there almost everyday (exceptions are the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month) to provide help to students as needed. No sign up necessary. They can just come in and ask for help.

The National Honor Society will begin tutoring on September 9th in Room 101 from 3:30 to 4:30 every Tuesday through Thursday.

If your student needs help with Spanish, one of our Spanish teachers, Mrs. Alvarado is offering tutoring before school in room 510. This is on Mondays and Thursdays from 7:30 AM to 8:15 AM.

Thursday, September 3rd - PTSA Meeting @ 9:00 AM in the Canyon H.S. Library

Friday, September 4th - 9th Grade Orientation Assembly Periods 1 and 3

Monday, September 7th - Labor Day - NO SCHOOL

Tuesday, September 8th - CHS Foundation Meeting in room 114 @ 7:00 PM

Thursday, September 10th - Welcome Back Pep Rally for Students (Double Assembly Bell Schedule)

Saturday, September 12th - WARP - Welcome Back Dance from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM

Wednesday, September 16th - Back to School Night at 6:00 PM